


For Good

by Succulint



Category: Persona 5, Persona Series
Genre: Developing Friendships, Gen, No Metaverse (Persona 5), Some minor blood near the end
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-02
Updated: 2019-03-02
Packaged: 2019-11-07 19:54:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 12,192
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17966993
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Succulint/pseuds/Succulint
Summary: Snapshots by the month of Goro and Akira’s developing friendship. All in a world where Gods were not left to their own devices. (aka a take on a no metaverse AU)





	For Good

**Author's Note:**

> This is my final BB project! I joined this on a whim back when applications were open but I'm glad I did it. This is something I've been working on ever since, and has been my main focus for several months, its also by far the longest one shot I have ever written. I have to give a shout out to both of the artists that were partnered with me, I'll make sure to leave links to their works here as soon as they are posted! 
> 
> Also, the title is based off the song of the same title from Wicked

_**JUNE**_

Out of everything Akira has had to deal with at Shujin so far, the social studies trip to a TV station has easily been the most boring. He had originally signed up to go here of all places because it was definitely the most interesting out of all his options. However, by the time he was halfway through the first day, he was already wishing that he had just skipped, horrible reputation be damned. The only thing salvaging his mood throughout the whole experience was the existence of both Ann and Ryuji. Both seemed to be just as disinterested as he was, much to the dismay of his homeroom teacher who really just looked like she (not unusually) wanted a nap. The second day of the trip was more interesting, unfortunately not by very much. They had been promised that they would be allowed to sit in on a taping of some sort of interview show, leading the students to excitedly discuss which celebrity they thought they would get to meet. Causing near mayhem when they were all disappointed at the announcement of who was actually being interviewed, some sort of male celebrity chef that housewives were currently obsessed with. He was an older man that made it very obvious that speaking in front of teenagers would not have been his first choice of exposure. Akira didn’t blame him really, especially not when he looked around at all his classmates and saw how uninterested they all were. 

It truly was a blessing when they were finally allowed to leave, an opinion shared by most everyone in the room. It was obvious that most of them wanted to go home, but at the same time wanted to take advantage of the attractions in the area. They didn’t have much time the day before, and the taping had taken a much shorter amount of time than it was scheduled to. Before going into the interviewing room, Ryuji had brought up the idea of going to Dome Town, the amusement park in the area, and both Ann and himself had agreed that going there could be fun, even if just for a little while. 

Because school is still ongoing for most people, it is not quite as busy as Akira imagined it would be. He had always seen photos for various theme parks online, and in every one of them there were always massive crowds and long lines. Compared to that, it is quite pleasant, however it doesn’t stop them all from complaining about the crowds that were actually there. 

Eventually, the three of them sit down at the one of the restaurants near the entrance, the sky is slowly turning a soft shade of orange, letting them know that they need to leave soon. Ryuji yawns, crossing his arms over his chest, “Man, I was so excited to get out of school for a couple days.” 

Ann sighs, leaning on top of her arms on the table, “Seriously, this was the best part, and we were hardly even here!”

Akira laughs at his friends complaints, cut short when something catches his eye from across the pathway. At first he isn’t quite sure why his attention had been captured so easily, but looking at the male worker directly in his line of sight for a couple seconds makes him realize that reason. He is around their age, perhaps slightly older, with light brown hair about the length of his shoulders. The dark circles under his eyes remind him strongly of Ms. Kawakami, including the very obvious attempt to cover them up with makeup, however they are still visible even despite that. It makes Akira wonder just what is going on in his life to make him so exhausted.

“Yo ‘Kira!” Akira is startled out of his thoughts by Ryuji yelling to try and get his attention. “Are you okay?”

It takes a moment for him to really realize what is being said to him, he almost forgot the people he is supposed to be paying attention to. “Oh, yeah, sorry.”

Ryuji doesn’t seem convinced, and he and Ann share a concerned glance, but Akira already finds himself distracted once again. However, by the time he turns back to where the boy was once standing, he is already gone. 

Later, when he is in the Shibuya train station trying to get home, his eyes catch onto a flyer from Dome Town offering jobs for students during the summer months. In that same moment that he holds that flyer in his hands he gets an idea, and Akira is not one to give up on his ideas very easily. 

==========================================================================================

The entirety of his first day working is spent listening to his boss explain everything that he will be required to do while working there. It seems that he is not the only one that found the flyer, because there are many other people his age with him, all with varying states of alertness. It is likely that many high school students saw working at this place as an excuse to get out of Tokyo and hang out in the theme park every day that they could during the summer, even if most of the time they were working there themselves. Akira doesn’t see that worker from before at all that day, at least letting him know that he is not as new to working there as anyone else, definitely something he can use to his advantage. He tries his best to look around the area so he can at least get a glimpse of what job he does here, while also paying attention to what his own tasks that he will be doing for the next two months or so. 

It is near the end of his first day that he finally sees him, appearing to be just finishing up as well, so Akira finds it easy to casually walk in the same direction as him. He tries very hard to convince himself that this is in no way creepy, and hopelessly fails. He just hopes that the other male will not take his curiosity the wrong way. Akira waits until he enters the subway, before he gently taps him on the shoulder, trying to keep his body language as neutral as possible. He turns around abruptly, and Akira tries his best to be as friendly as possible when he waves, “Hello!’

He quickly looks Akira’s outfit up and down, he hadn’t the time to change out of his uniform before following, so he is still wearing the same thing he had been all day. “Hello…?” asks, hesitantly. “Can I help you?”

Akira nods, bowing politely, “I just wanted to say hi, we will be working together after all.” By the time he straightens himself out, the other is looking at him skeptically, almost as if he can’t believe that Akira is speaking to him at all. 

“Right.” He turns away, leaving Akira with no time to say anything else before he walks off. He tries to follow him, but right as he does, a train pulls in and a wave of people exit, causing them both to become lost in the crowd. 

==========================================================================================

Akira spends the next few of his work days asking about him. He sees him a few times around the park, and is always avoided, seemingly on purpose. Through his investigation, Akira finds out that his name is Goro Akechi, that he had been working there since the beginning of the month, and...not really anything else. No one seemed to know anything about him, as they had never sat down to have a conversation with him, and somehow had never seen him before around the city. To them, and Akira himself really, Akechi seems like one that would much rather be left alone. Which is exactly why Akira decides to continue to try and speak with him. 

Needless to say, this plan doesn’t exactly work in his favour. Whenever Akira attempts to start a conversation, Akechi walks away, or simply ignores him, but all is not lost. He can tell that over time, Akechi becomes more comfortable about the presence of Akira during his work day. He still doesn’t return any waves or smiles, certainly not words, but the hesitance that he had shown before is slowly becoming much less prominent.

One thing that he cannot help but notice is just how often Akechi is there, working. Most of the people their age that had been hired were only there every once in a while; Akira was no exception. They had all been told on the first day that it was fine for now, as there were quite a lot of them. Because of this, the faces that Akira sees during his time there varies, Akechi himself being the only exception. Every time that he works there, so does the other, and Akira has a suspicion that this is not a coincidence, it would explain why he always seems so tired at least. He tries to ask him about it one day, but soon gives up after he is somehow ignored even more intensely than before.

“Hey Akechi-kun,” The first time Akira had called him that, he had flinched away from him ever so slightly as if to get away from the friendly gesture. Over time he has, thankfully, gotten used to it. “One time you should really give me the pleasure of hearing your voice.” 

A harsh glare is thrown his way, “And what, dare I ask, is that supposed to mean?”

Akira grins, not one to stand down, “Ah he speaks!” It’s typical of Akechi to only say things if he needs to clarify something, or to tell someone off, and it is in this moment that Akira vows to himself to change that. “It’s just that I would much rather our conversations not be one sided.” In the next moment, he turns around before Akechi can say anything more, and walks away just as he had done before. Sweet payback.

_**JULY** _

As summer vacation, and exams, draw closer, Akira becomes much busier; his friends and classmates in similar positions. As a result, he is unable to make it into work nearly as often, wanting to focus all of his energy on making sure there wasn’t even a chance he could fail any of his classes. As a direct effect of school letting out soon, the area around the theme park begins to get much busier, and Akira can only imagine what the crowds will be like when the vacation really hits in August. The managers have been doing a good job at keeping everyone organized, and making sure that everyone gets a fair amount of time off, which allows Akira to study guilt-free. The only one that doesn’t seem to get the memo is, unsurprisingly, Akechi. Whenever Akira is scheduled to work, he is also there, doing the same, and as a result seems even more drained than usual, which is saying something. He doesn’t seem to know when or how to give himself a break, which is something Akira himself is guilty of sometimes, and therefore he feels like he should say something. 

It is exactly this line of thought that leads him to buying a cheap coffee from a vending machine inside the park to give to him. It was definitely nothing compared to the coffee he’s used to at Leblanc, however he assumed that giving Akechi something in a thermos and claiming it to be something that would help keep him awake would likely be very suspicious. Plus, this is something that he had to spend his own money on, that made it more thoughtful...right? 

Akira finds Akechi during their short lunch break in order to give it to him, but cannot help doubting himself the entire walk. What if he doesn’t even like coffee, what if he is somehow offended, what if he’s strictly anti-caffeine and hates anyone who does indulge in it? Akira forces himself to stop thinking about it until he taps Akechi on the shoulder, and he has no time to think any more about hypotheticals. Akechi flinches and turns around quickly in defensiveness, frowning when he sees who it is that had gotten his attention. “What is it…?”

Trying his best to smile under the pressure being put on him, Akira holds out the can, “I just wanted to give you this.” 

Akechi hesitates, slowly raising his hands to take it from him. He seems to be trying his best to avoid touching him whatsoever, something Akira is unsure how he is supposed to feel about. “...Thanks.” He opens the can and takes a sip, he cringes at the taste and Akira finds himself trying not to laugh despite himself. 

Opening his own, Akira cannot help but have a similar reaction, he is spoiled when it comes to coffee these days. Maybe he should have just brought along some of Sojiro’s coffee with him anyways, even if he just drank it himself. “That is definitely worse than I expected.” He doesn’t respond, but Akira sees the smallest of smiles come across Akechi’s face. 

It is this small but meaningful (at least in Akira’s eyes) exchange that gives him enough confidence to try and talk to him later. It is after the rush of people the park usually gets during the mid-afternoon after lunchtime that he decides to give it a try. Sensing that Akira was one of the only people willing and okay with speaking with Akechi, they were usually placed at or around the same area of the park. He finds him at one of the many small restaurants fairly close to the entrance, it is currently closed for cleaning, and Akechi being the only one in the building it seems, is the one doing the job.

Akira waits for him to notice that he has walked in, but to his slight dismay, there is no response whatsoever. He takes this chance to sneak up behind him and tap him on the shoulder. He lets out a likely embarrassing noise in surprise and turns on him with his usual glare, “What do you want?”

“Just thought I could help,” Akira says, holding his arms up in defense.

Akechi sighs, “I don’t need it.” He continues going back to wiping down a table that already looks suspiciously shiny. “You’ll just get in the way anyways.”

“I would not. You know you really need to learn to relax every once in a while.”

This seems to get Akechi’s attention. He freezes and turns himself around to face Akira again, his face void of any emotion in an eerie sort of way. “I do not have the option to just ‘relax,’ like you obviously do.” 

Akira cannot help but feel like he is supposed to be offended by that, “You have to give yourself a break at least sometimes.”

Even though Akira tries his best to keep his tone neutral, Akechi seems to still be uninterested in anything he is saying. “No, I can’t do that. Now leave me alone.” He begins to walk towards the storage closet with his materials to put them away where they belong. 

Without thinking Akira blurts out, “Don’t your parents wish they could see you around more?” 

Akira means for it to be an innocent question, but it didn’t seem to come across that way because in the next moment, Akechi slams his fist down on a table that he had been walking past. “Do not act, as if you understand my life.” 

Unable to stop himself from flinching at the sudden outburst of anger, Akira goes silent. Akechi runs a hand through his hair and sighs to himself, choosing to not say anything more. This tense silence lasts for several long seconds before Akechi finally moves again to finish putting away the cleaning tools. Realizing he has likely crossed many lines that he really shouldn’t have, Akira lets him go this time without complaining even to himself. The only regret he feels at this is that in this moment, it is completely his fault. 

It takes a lot of Akira’s courage to seek Akechi out during their break again the next day. It is obvious enough throughout the morning that he is purposely trying to avoid him again, but this time Akira knows that it is completely reasonable for him to react in this way; not that it makes it any easier to apologize of course. When he finally manages to get his attention, it is with extreme reluctance on Akechi’s part

“Look um,” Akira runs his hand through his messy hair, suddenly slightly embarrassed by it. “Sorry for being so pushy yesterday, I didn’t mean to upset you. Can I make it up to you?”

Akechi looks at him skeptically, though his glare settles slightly in its intensity. “And how exactly would you do that?”

“Well,” He clears his throat. “I know a small coffee shop in Yongen-Jaya that you might be interested in.” 

==========================================================================================

When school finally lets out, Akira is relieved, and he can tell that he’s not the only one because he immediately begins to see even more people his age around every day. It’s strange seeing so many people from his school, and others, not only in plain clothes but so relaxed as well. 

He spends most days that he isn’t working hanging out with his friends now that they are all free from classes, and usually it is quite late by the time he gets back to the cafe. Sojiro has began to trust him much more than he had before, enough that he isn’t concerned by him being out all day and not returning until after dark. Akira can understand it, although he had been told of the reasoning only very recently. Sojiro is very protective of the people living with him and did not want them to be in any actual danger, even if that danger was merely a teenage ‘delinquent.’

Akira gets back one evening incredibly tired. Ryuji had somehow convinced him to go to the gym even after they had already gone for a run, managing to convince him with the energy he somehow always has. He is so tired in fact, that he completely misses the new face sitting at the counter, drinking from a no half empty cup. When Akira attempts to go upstairs to finally relax in his bed for the night, Sojiro loudly clears his throat while still hiding his face behind his paper, unseen to all except Akira himself. He gestures his head to the man sitting at the counter that Akira paid no attention to before. He is surprised when he finally gets a look at his face, to see that it is Akechi of all people. It takes Akira a few seconds to remember that he had invited him here, he had expected Akechi to at least let him know that he was coming beforehand. 

As he sits down beside him, Akechi hums in acknowledgement but doesn’t say anything else, instead taking a long sip of his coffee.

“Glad you could make it,” Akira leans over the counter and rests his head on his arms. “I almost thought you wouldn’t take me up on my offer.”

Akechi straightens his back and tucks a strand of hair behind his ear, “I assumed that it would be rude if I didn’t.” He looks at Akira, skeptical, “Unless you’re going to take it back. I can leave.”

Akira sits up, suddenly feeling more awake, “No, no definitely not!” Akira reaches for his wallet inside his bag that he had placed on the ground when he sat down. “How much was it?” He does not turn towards Sojiro when he asks, but knows that the owner always pays attention to what people are saying in his cafe, even though he likes to pretend he doesn’t.

Sojiro raises an eyebrow, “He’s a friend of yours, plus it’s his first time.” He doesn’t move the paper from in front of his face , “I already told him it’s on the house.”

Relaxing ever so slightly, Akira slumps back over the counter and slips his wallet back into his bag. Akechi seems amused by his actions, as he is smiling slightly to himself as he continues to drink from his mug. He seems much less tense than he usually does, and Akira cannot find any part of himself that regrets the decision to invite him here. 

They sit beside each other in surprisingly comfortable silence for quite a while, long enough that they eventually become the only people left. Akira is so distracted by the comfort of it that he is surprised when Akechi sets his cup down gently on the counter and pushes it away from him. He stands, dusts off the legs of his pants and grabs his bag leaning against the bottom of the counter. 

The moment Akechi turns around to leave, Akira realizes something that his tired brain hadn’t thought of before now. “Wait um,” Akechi stops and turns his head towards him but doesn’t fully turn around. “I didn’t give you the address of this place, how did you find it?”

Smiling again, Akechi turns back to the door, “The area isn’t that large you know, it wasn’t too difficult.” The bell rings as he opens the door to the outside, “The coffee was delicious by the way, thank you.” And then once again he is gone, but this time when he leaves, Akira has a feeling that he is going to be back soon.

_**AUGUST** _

Akira was right. Akechi did end up coming back to the cafe, multiple times in fact, something that makes him incredibly happy. He gets to see Akechi in a way that he doubts many people have before, which makes him feel special in a way. He is in Leblanc one afternoon when Wakaba shows up with Futaba in tow to visit Sojiro. Their attention locked to each other almost instantly, Akechi looking up at the sound of the bell, and Wakaba taking notice of the new person she had never seen before. There is an awkward silence as they slowly enter, not moving past the entrance, until she finally decides to break it, “It’s not often there are new faces here.”

Very rarely does Wakaba ever visit, enough that Akira always finds himself questioning what exactly she does during the day. Not that she really has to come to Leblanc at all, considering she does live with Sojiro. It was only a couple months ago that he was even made aware of the existence of both her and her daughter, the information only given to him after several of his nights behind the counter of the cafe. 

Wakaba had been a private researcher just two years before. She had several theories about psychology that were solid enough that other people in the research world began to take interest in her work on the human subconscious. Of course not all of this attention had been positive, and soon she was in the eye of even more powerful people, people that didn’t seem to want her to release any of the information that she had collected. At first she persisted, not wanting to stop researching something she had spent so much time and effort on, but when they began to threaten both her and her family, she knew she had to make a sacrifice. 

Nowadays, one wouldn’t be able to even tell that she had been involved in such a dramatic event. She lives in a quiet suburb of Tokyo in a small house with her child and an old friend. She still continues her research to this day, but is much more secretive about it, and swears to herself that she is only doing it to satisfy her own curiosity.

Perhaps it is her previous occupation, or maybe just her own personality, that leads her to her continued interest in the teenage boy that she had just met. “What’s a kid your age doing in a hole like this?”

Akira can practically sense the glare that Sojiro sends her way from across the room, almost shuddering despite the fact that it’s not meant for him. Wakaba doesn’t seem bothered though, likely used to his harsh glances after all her time spent living with him. 

“Frankly, I find it very relaxing here,” Akechi’s voice is pitched higher than it is normally, a tone that Akira himself heard exclusively when they had first met. “The coffee is a bonus.”

This response seems to amuse her, smiling as she makes herself comfortable in one of the booths. Sitting on the stool farthest away from the door, Futaba clicks away at something on her laptop. She isn’t actively paying attention, but Akira knows that she is listening to everything they are saying. He suspects that it might be a skill she picked up from Sojiro, pretending to be doing something, while also eavesdropping on the things around them. Akira sits next to her, and she is used to him enough by now that she lets him look over her shoulder as she continues what she is doing, which consists of playing an otome game apparently. 

“What I mean is,” Wakaba leans forward onto her palms. “You’re young, you should be doing something else with your summer.”

Akechi shifts in his seat, his coffee close to being finished. At this point, Akira wouldn’t be surprised if he finished it now as quick as he can, if only for an excuse to see himself out, “I don’t really have anything I do other than school and work.”

This answer doesn’t please her, and she seems skeptical of how truthful he’s being. Truthfully, if Akira didn’t know Akechi as well as he thinks he does, he would feel the same way, “Really? You don’t do anything else?”

The grip on the coffee cup in Akechi’s hand tightens, “I live alone, so I have to work to pay for it.” 

This, is not information that Akira knew before, although it would explain a lot about why he always sees him at work, and why he is so against the idea of taking time off for himself. Living in an apartment in Tokyo could get expensive, enough that Akira is in awe of how Akechi can somehow manage it while also going to school most days of the week. 

Continuing to seemingly be unable to read the room, Wakaba speaks up again,“Do your parents not want to support you?”

The silence after she finishes speaking is almost deafening. Akira thinks he catches Akechi’s teeth clench, but thinks he must have imagined it when it is gone in the next moment. “Oh no, I can’t possibly ask for them to help me with this.”

His attempts at diverting the conversation are not lost on Akira, and it would appear that Wakaba notices as well. However she seems much less lenient about letting things go than Akechi probably appreciates. Akira wonders to himself how much longer he’ll be able to wait before he inevitably has to stop the conversation. “How about for when you go to college?” 

“Oh no, I couldn’t possibly afford that.” He keeps his tone light despite the serious implication of his words. “Honestly I’ve never even considered continuing school.”

This catches Akira’s attention even further, and completely forgets that he had been pretending not to pay attention. “What?” He exclaims. “But you’re so smart.”

Akechi seems shocked by his slight outburst, but he quickly recovers, “I mean thank you,” He turns his gaze to the inside of his coffee cup, which has most definitely gone cold by now. “But it’s more of a question of money and debt, not intelligence.” Sojiro comes by with a pot to offer him a refill, but Akechi waves him away. 

“You shouldn’t worry about something like that,” Wakaba points at him as if she is a mother scolding her child, and considering she is a mother herself, this doesn’t come as much of a surprise. “Education is important you know, you can’t get much with only a high school diploma.”

Sighing to himself, Akechi takes the final sip of his coffee, pushing it forward so Sojiro can take it from him. “I’m aware.” He turns the stool around completely so he can fully face the rest of the cafe when he speaks next. “I just have other things I need to worry about right now.”

Wakaba grumbles to herself softly, perhaps unaware that she can be heard, or that she’s doing it at all. “What a waste.”

Akira feels like he may need to intervene, especially when he sees the way that Akechi reacts, his entire body tense. Unsurprising to Akira, who has seen firsthand his reactions to this type of scenario before, Akechi stands up to leave; though not before putting his money to pay on the counter. He completely ignores Wakaba when she tries to convince him not to ‘run away’ as she put it. Usually Akira would do something to try and stop him, but he knows that not only can he do nothing, but just like the time he was the one to anger him, he knows that Akechi is being reasonable.

Sojiro sighs from behind the counter in the direction of his friend, “Seriously Wakaba?”

“I was just curious!”

Even though Akira does not dislike the woman, he can’t help but worry now about how he had been when he had first met Akechi. He hopes that he wasn’t that bad, but he’s unsure if he can promise himself anything.

_**SEPTEMBER** _

Summer comes to an end almost before it even starts, and with it, so does Akira’s job. All of the summer workers are given a thank you note alongside their last paycheck, a small thing, but appreciated nonetheless. While most people working do leave, there are a few that continue working there, plus the people that had been working there before the summer hiring began. The park is open year ‘round after all, although only certain parts of it, so less people are needed to help run the place. Unsurprising to Akira, Akechi is among the number of people deciding to stay longer. When he leaves after his last day, Akira smiles and waves to him, a pleasant feeling going through his chest when Akechi does the same. 

School is no different than it had been before, Ryuji and Ann are still the only people in the building that talk to him on a regular basis. The only other person besides them that doesn’t treat him like some horrible stain on their existence is Mishima and well, he always seems to be busy. During lunch on the first day back, Ryuji visits their classroom before Akira has the chance to leave with Ann. He sits himself down sideways on the desk beside him and many of the others in the room either back up from the three of them or leave the room entirely. Given the fact that Ryuji either doesn’t notice or chooses to ignore it, Akira is willing to bet that he is used to this treatment. 

“So,” He starts immediately after making himself comfortable. “We were supposed to meet up at some point this summer.”

Akira sits back against the wall, chuckling to himself awkwardly. “Oh yeah…” The three of them made loose plans to do so all the way back in July. He had spent time with them both separately several times over the month, but their plans to do something together ended up falling through. Akira had been busy with his work, so he had pretty much forgotten about it. “Sorry about that.”

Ann leans forward over her chair to actively join the conversation, “I mean, we could always do it this month.”

Placing his head on his arms on top of his desk, Ryuji sighs, “But it was meant to celebrate the end of exams.”

“I mean,” Akira stands up, casually stretching his arms in the process. “Does it really matter?”

“I guess not…”

Ann claps her hands, smiling. “Yeah let’s do it! I can let you both know when I’m free over text.”

Both of them agree to her suggestion, and with that the entire conversation is over. The three of them hang out in the same spot until the bell rings to signify the end of lunch time. As Ryuji stands up to leave, complaining about having to go back to class, Akira suddenly thinks of something.

“Wait!” He yells, causing Ryuji to stop in place and for Ann to turn back to him again in her seat. “Can I invite someone else?”

==========================================================================================

The next time Akechi is in Leblanc, Akira takes the opportunity to invite him to the get together with his friends the next weekend. He seems surprised when asked, but Akira ends up being even more surprised when he agrees. 

A lot of the time, Akechi shows up still in his work uniform, sometimes even using the washroom to change, so Akira knows that he is still working often. As such, he usually assumes that Akechi is too busy to do much of anything outside of his usual schedule, regardless of this, Akira is glad that he is planning on coming. 

The day of, Akira borrows a spare hot pot set to use from the kitchen of the cafe. It’s late enough in the afternoon that Sojiro doesn’t seem to mind closing up early. Akira had gone out the day before to buy groceries for the food they were planning on making, and brought Futaba with him. She had told him that it was because she wanted to go outside, but he’s still pretty sure that her mother put her up to it. Especially considering she doesn’t really talk to many people, at least as far as he knows. Futaba had not said much to him, and only did so when prompted for suggestions; she hadn’t seemed as if she didn’t want to be there, only that she wasn’t sure how to begin a conversation.

The broth in the pot is just about hot enough to burn his hand when the bell above the cafe door chimes, signaling the entrance of one of his friends. Akira is about to go downstairs to see if it’s just Sojiro returning, when said person inside yells, “Yo Akira!” 

He yells back, unsure of how safe it would be to leave the portable stove alone in the wooden attic, “Up here!” Before he even finishes speaking, he hears the usual creaking sound the stairs make whenever anyone steps on them, something he is used to hearing by now.

“Hey man,” Ryuji lightly slaps his shoulder in greeting before making himself at home on the couch. “Ann said she’s gonna be here soon.”

A quick check of his phone shows Akira that he’s right. According to the time the messages were sent, he can guess that she is on the train, likely about halfway to Leblanc by now.

He is distracted during the time before she shows up by the broth, which by this point has started to boil. He turns down the heat and puts the pre-cut meat into the broth while it cooks. Akira is brought to the attention of his friend when Ryuji points out one of the video games on the shelf below his television, a new one he had just bought the other day. 

“Dude, I wanted this so bad as a kid!” Ryuji picks up the box and turns it over in his hands. He opens it and runs his free hand over the cartridge as if in disbelief. At the sight of the childish delight in his friend, Akira can’t help but laugh, this reaction is met with a hit to the chest. “Shut up!” This, of course, causes him to only laugh louder. 

They are interrupted when the sound of the front door opening rings through the building again. Neither of them have to say anything for Ann to find her way into the attic, announcing her entrance with a wave and loud ‘Hello!’

She pulls up the chair next to his desk, sitting on it backwards. “How’s it going so far?” 

Akira sits down on the floor so he can stir the liquid in the pot, checking to see how well cooked the meat is, “It seems fine.”

Seemingly pleased with his answer, she launches herself into telling them about her day, and about what she had to deal with at her modeling gig earlier that day. Mika had been there again, so it had gone about as well as Akira expected it to, which it usually does when she’s involved. Even when she finishes telling them about that in particular, the three of them continue to talk to each other about various topics while Akira cooks their food. 

By the time Akira realizes about the missing person, the hot pot is already almost finished cooking. Ann seems to also notice this, “Hey uh, you did say another friend of yours was coming right?”

Akira nods, although at this point he is unsure of if Akechi is actually going to be coming or not. It has already been about half an hour past the time that Akira had given him, so he should technically be here by now already. He doesn’t seem like the type to forget, but the only other way Akira can think of is if Akechi just decided not to come, which is an option he isn’t sure he wants to entertain. 

Almost as if on cue, the door opens once again, and he freezes in place. There is no movement downstairs for a few seconds, and Akira thinks he may have only imagined it before he hears a soft and hesitant voice call out from downstairs, “Kurusu-kun?” Akira stands up from his crouched position and walks downstairs, he leans over the railing to see Akechi looking around the first floor in confusion, trying to figure out where they all are. He jumps slightly when he sees Akira on the stairs before laughing softly to himself. “Oh hello. I didn’t see you there.”

Smiling, Akira gestures upstairs and Akechi follows. “I see you’re dressed for the occasion.” He’s wearing something that he’s never seen before on him, it also looks new, as if he had just bought it recently. It’s still simple enough that it must not have been too expensive, only a bluish grey dress shirt with jeans, but he’s still the most well dressed out of all of them here. He gives him a thumbs up, and Akechi flushes red just the slightest bit, looking away as they walk upstairs.

“Sorry I’m late, I didn’t want to show up in my uniform.” He pauses for a moment when he enters the room, probably overwhelmed by the other people in the room. “The train from my home was delayed, I hope I didn’t miss much.”

Ann, ever the welcoming type, beams up at him from her seat, “Nah, you’re just in time for the best part!”

To accentuate her point, Akira turns off the portable stove, he also intends to take the hotpot off and place it on the table instead, but quickly realizes that he has yet to bring it upstairs. He leaves it for now, Ryuji offers to help when he explains where he’s going, so the two of them bring up the set of table and chairs. When they get back up the stairs, Akira is pleased to see Ann and Akechi in the middle of a conversation. Akechi still seems slightly tense in the new environment, but is very slowly becoming more relaxed as time goes on.

The four of them set the table, and Akira finishes it all off by putting the large hot pot down in the centre. They place the three extra chairs around it, using the couch at the side of the room as a fourth seat. Once finished, Ann and Ryuji argue briefly over which of them to take the couch, all while Akira and Akechi casually sit down on two of the chair opposite each other. Eventually Ann sits down on the couch, refusing to argue anymore, making Ryuji hesitantly take the last remaining chair. All of this is forgotten when they start eating only interrupting themselves briefly to make small talk.

Akechi stays silent most of the time, if it’s because of awkwardness or just because he has nothing to add, Akira isn’t quite sure. He doesn’t seem uncomfortable however, enough that Akira doesn’t feel the need to point anything out, lest it do get awkward through his own fault. He does seem to react when either Ryuji or Ann makes a dumb joke, trying his best to hide his laughter behind the coffee mug in his hands. The energy in the attic is lighthearted as they eat, talking amongst themselves about anything other than school, it almost feels like summer again.

He isn’t sure how exactly the conversation changes to something so serious, but one minute Ryuji is telling them about something dumb he found on the internet the other day; and the next, they’re talking about all the kinds of things they have to deal with on a regular basis. Even this started relatively lighthearted, with Ryuji complaining about the way people look at him during school, not to mention the things they say about him behind his back. Eventually however, Ann started talking about her own experiences at school and, it really shouldn’t have been such a surprise that it all somehow led to Kamoshida. 

Kamoshida is long gone from the school now, but back when Akira first came to Tokyo, he was one of the people that made him almost regret what brought him here. If not for Futaba he thinks, Kamoshida might still be in the same place. One of the first times that they met, she realized that something was wrong and immediately looked into it on her laptop; it was honestly scary the things she could find out using that thing. She looked into the incidents herself and came to Akira with her information only a few days later. She then released it online, with his permission and that of Ann, and the people of Tokyo latched onto it quickly. Throughout the next few weeks, the school was constantly bombarded with media attention, very little of it positive, and the rest of the faculty struggled to keep up. Kamoshida was quickly fired, and then arrested, though most people in the school know he was only forced to leave because he had brought them bad press. The school was even worse off when the general public began to realize that the principal had been covering up everything that had been happening. Now of course, it is better, but some of them still hear the gossip whenever they go out around Tokyo in their uniforms, especially in Shibuya. 

Ann, drowsy by now and laying on the couch, doesn’t add much, but lets her feelings be known whenever one of his less savory acts is mentioned. Because Akira didn’t have the absolute pleasure of dealing with the old gym teacher as long as the other two have, it is Ryuji who explains most of the situation. Akechi doesn’t add anything, aware that this isn’t his story to tell, but he frowns deeply when Ryuji explains how the teacher had hurt him.

“It just kinda reminded me of my dad y’know?” Ryuji is slightly quieter now than he usually is, and Akira can tell that he hasn’t talked about his childhood with much of anyone before. Ryuji told him about it one day after they hung out a couple months ago, and even then there were obviously details he had left out, Akira respected that. “He treated me an’ my ma pretty much in the same way, at least before we managed to leave.” 

Akira puts a hand on his back in comfort, “You’re good now.”

Ryuji clears his throat, nodding in acknowledgement. He doesn’t say anything more in explanation, probably not trusting his voice much at the moment.

“I...never knew my dad.” A soft voice from across the table brings Akira back to the present, as both himself and Ryuji look at Akechi from where they are sitting. Even Ann sits up on the couch, tired as she is, wanting to show that she is listening to the new person in their group. He seems much more anxious about speaking when he realizes that they are all looking at him, but regardless of this, he continues to speak. “He left my mother the moment he found out she was pregnant with his child.”

“Ugh!” Ann quickly covers her mouth when she realizes how loud her displeased noise had been, although Akira can’t say that he disagrees with her. “I’m sorry! Please continue!”

Akechi clears his throat, “My mother’s family disowned her afterwards, so she had to take care of me herself.” He clenches his fists over the leg of his pants in an attempt to keep himself calm. “She killed herself when I was six.” He turns his head upwards to the ceiling when he speaks, resting his head on the back of his chair so he couldn’t see the reactions of everyone else in the room.

Ryuji sits up straight in his chair, “Wait so, what happened to you?” 

The silence that stretches on for what feels like minutes nearly makes Akira interrupt to tell him that he doesn’t have to answer, but that doesn’t end up being necessary. “I was put in foster care afterwards, ended up in more places than I can even really remember.” No one in the room really seems to have any idea how to respond to what he had just told them. It doesn’t help that both Ann and Ryuji had just met him today, so they really didn’t know anything about him before this. “All I really ended up learning there was that no one gives a shit about those kids.” Akira feels the need to hug him suddenly, this is a thought that he is familiar with surrounding people he cares about, but he is also aware that Akechi probably wouldn’t appreciate it.

“That’s horrible.” As generic as a response it probably is, Akechi seems to appreciates Ann’s attempts to empathize with him. “I can’t even imagine…”

Akechi shrugs, “I just, got used to it guess.”

Akira hesitates, something is still bothering him, and as much as he doesn’t want to pry into his personal life, it seems like Akechi is in a bit of a sharing mood today. He suspects it has something to do with the fact that all of them are doing the same. “But, didn’t you mention that you live alone?”

His expression goes dark for a second, thinking, “You age out of the foster system once you turn 18, and my birthday was in June.” He explains, “They really didn’t waste any time getting rid of me once that day came by. I woke up that morning and found that all of my belongings were outside on the lawn waiting for me.”

The sound of a chair scraping against the wood floor is the only warning before Ryuji speaks up, “The hell man, that sucks!”

“Ryuji...” Ann softly chides.

Expecting to see some sort of irritation on Akechi’s face at how loud the response was, however he is pleasantly surprised to hear that it is not the case. “I admit, it is nice to hear someone angry over my circumstances.”

Akira can’t help but latch onto that comment, it makes him realize that yes, he is angry, over both his circumstances and Akechi’s. So many adults just think they can hurt and take advantage of kids because they have less power and influence. It makes him think that maybe it’s fate that brought all of them together. 

Suddenly, Ryuji laughs, and the three of them look at him for some sort of explanation. “Sorry sorry, just thoughta’ something.” He casually wraps an arm around Akechi’s shoulders, ignoring the way he flinches slightly at the contact. “Welcome to the shitty dad club.”

Despite obvious attempts to stop himself, Akechi begins to laugh, relaxing into the gesture, “Sure.”

“Since we’re all sharing our sob stories,” He turns to Akira, not yet removing his arm from Akechi’s shoulders, “You’ve dealt with some shit recently too haven’t ya?”

Akechi looks at him in interest, which causes Akira to laugh awkwardly. Really, what he went through didn’t even hold a candle to being treated horribly pretty much your whole life like in Akechi’s case. Despite this, Akira tells them anyways, about how he tried to help a woman who was being harassed, and ended up being charged with assault. As he talks, Akechi’s inner brows slowly get lower on his face, his frown deepening with each new fact he learns about Akira’s case. “And now, here I am.”

Once Akira finishes his story he notices that Akechi is not the only person with this same reaction. Each of his friends is glaring down at the floorboards as if they somehow have all the answers to their concerns. 

“I already knew all that and I’m still pissed!” Ryuji half yells, “I can’t believe that someone would do that shit.”

“I can’t say I’m surprised…” Ann says, dejected. “It seems we’ve all been screwed over in some way.” 

Akira stretches his arms behind his head, “It seems like it.”

A few moments of silence pass before suddenly Ryuji starts to laugh again, it starts out quietly, but eventually as the rest of them join in, it grows in volume. It feels strange, but freeing as well, to just find humor in their shared negative experiences.

Now that the atmosphere in the attic has returned almost to what it was originally, the light conversation picks back up as they slowly finish their meal, which at this point has begun to grow cold. None of them complain though, and very soon afterwards they are putting all their utensils back in their proper places. Akira tells them that he can do it himself, but none of them seem ready to accept that, and offer to help him instead. Together, they carry everything downstairs and place it in the sink, then carry the table back downstairs and put it back in its’ place. He can do any other clean up in the morning when he’s less exhausted from talking and eating so much. 

Just as they finish putting everything away, the bell on top of the front door rings again, and Akira himself leaning over the railing of the stairs in confusion, this feeling of confusion isn’t helped when he sees who it is. Futaba, with her bright orange hair, is standing just inside the cafe, looking around as if searching for something, or someone. He waves at her, and a flash of recognition sparks in her eyes when she finally sees him on the stairs. 

“Yo,” She says casually. “Are your friends still here?”

Akira looks over at his friends who seem just as confused as he is. They all look at him to try and figure out what is going on; but he has no clue himself. “Yeah, why?”

Not bothering to answer him, she advances towards him, “Cool, I’m coming up.” Akira tries to ask her why she’s even here in the first place, but she completely ignores him, going up the attic stairs two at a time.

Without so much as a greeting Futaba walks directly towards Akechi, who looks at her defensively. She reaches towards her back pocket, slowly pulling out…a phone, holding it out in front of her like an offering. It’s an old model that is definitely not her own, but it looks relatively new, or at least new enough that it doesn’t have any cracks in it. It also seems to be strangely void of any sort of scratches whatsoever.

Akechi looks down at the phone in front of him, and then back up at her face, “What is this?” He says slowly.

“My mom wants you to have this, take it.”

This only seems to make him more confused, “No, I can’t possibly.”

Futaba frowns in distaste, “Just take it dummy. Get Akira and his friends to put their numbers in it.” 

Akechi hesitates, obviously turned off by the insult she had thrown at him, but ends up taking it from her anyways. 

“It’s just to apologize,” Futaba pulls her sweater back up over her shoulders. “For asking so many inappropriate questions last time.”

“I see,” He clears his throat. “In that case, tell your mother I said thanks.”

She nods, turning around to take her leave, “See ya’”

No one speaks until they hear the sound of the bell at the front door once again, signalling her leave.

“What was that about?” Ryuji and Ann seem to be in a similar state of confusion. Having never met Futaba nor her mother before, they obviously had no idea what had just happened.

Akira waves away their concerns, “Family friend of Sojiro’s.” He gestures in Akechi’s direction, “They met before.”

They both seem to understand, but even if they still have concerns none of them are voiced. When he hears a pained sounding noise from Akechi’s direction he looks over in concern, only to see him wildly tapping through things on his new phone.

“How the hell...?” Finally taking pity on him, Akira sits down next to him on the bed, trying to guide him through the magic of the touchscreen.

==========================================================================================

That night, Akira gets a text message and assumes that it’s the usual group chat, only to be surprised when it is in fact Akechi who had sent the message. Squinting at the bright screen in the relative darkness of his room, he can see that the message simply says: ‘You can call me Goro.’ He smiles.

_**OCTOBER** _

Over the next month, Akira sees Goro a lot more often, and the two of them slowly get closer. While he is happy about this development, Akira does find it to be a bit strange. For one, getting used to calling Goro by his first name has been a slight challenge. It seems that it takes him awhile to get used to someone calling him that as well. Another thing that is odd,but not unpleasant, is how he is suddenly able to contact Goro whenever he wants. Him having a phone is so much more convenient than hoping each day that he comes into Leblanc so they could finally talk after several days of silence. However, this doesn’t seem to stop Goro from not responding for several hours after reading a message. It is likely that this is due to the fact that he is still not used to having a mobile device on hand at all times and doesn’t truly know how to text people properly yet. 

Recently, in fact, the responses have been coming in even slower than usual. The first few days of them being in contact had been fine, but the past week or so he has been almost silent, always speaking in one or two words, nothing substantial. It seems to start at the same time that the adults in Tokyo begin to talk about the current politics. It isn’t news to Akira that the Diet is planning on electing a new Prime Minister this October, but it almost seems like he is hearing way more about it than in previous years. Perhaps it has something to do with being in the big city, a place more likely to be affected than a small country town. Of course, it could also have something to do with the fact that he is slowly approaching the legal voting age.

He expresses his concern to both Ann and Ryuji, who both agree that it’s strange, and that something must be wrong. Perhaps it’s dramatic of him to just assume that Goro is acting unusually, but he just has a gut feeling that something is amiss. Akira comes up with the idea of another get together, but not even a month after the last one might seem strange or even suspicious, so he chooses his words carefully. Instead of a casual meeting he decides to arrange a study session hoping for it to attract more attention, much to Ryuji’s chagrin. Midterms are fairly close after all, a couple weeks away, and he knows that Goro wouldn’t mind the extra time studying. 

Akira brings up the idea in their full group chat and as suspected, Goro doesn’t respond right away. Akira is close to giving up hope for a couple days until, miraculously, he gets a response. Surprisingly Goro agrees almost immediately, although he only does so on the condition that he doesn’t stay too long. Akira still considers it a win, and agrees. That day before class he shoots his friends the thumbs up, and the plan is a go. 

They meet up the next Thursday right after school at Leblanc. Because it is a school night, none of them want to stay over in the evening and risk spending way too much time there. Unlike the last time, the three of them arrive at approximately the same time, leaving almost no room for talking before Goro practically forces them to sit down and work. Knowing that this strategy never works with his friends, he internally calculates the amount of time that it will take before Ryuji starts complaining.

After almost exactly the amount of time as Akira had guessed passes, Ryuji leans back in the booth and stretches, the sound of his back cracking causing everyone around him to flinch at the noise. Ann sends him a glare from across the table, “Really?”

Ryuji sends a similar look back, “I can’t sit down for this long ‘kay?” He stands up from the booth and goes over to the counter to order a soda. Sojiro shakes his head amusedly and goes into the kitchen to grab one for him. While he is gone, Ryuji looks towards the TV and sighs. “Ugh, election stuff, seriously?”

After this comment Akira notices Goro look up and stare at the television, suddenly keeping a tight grip on the edges of his notebook. Up until this moment, he had been absorbed in doing his work which mostly involved reading from his textbook, but now all of that seems to be forgotten. Akira has almost completely forgotten about the election, which was scheduled for a few days prior to this very day. He had completely forgotten that this is the day they are going to announce the results. Even though Akira has very little idea about any of the people they were considering, he still finds himself hooked onto the news station that is currently being broadcasted from the cafe. No other people are inside the building at this moment, so none of them have to deal with the usual regulars making comments when he is only trying to watch. 

After a minute or so, the newscaster finally stops talking about the details of the election itself and announces that he is finally going to be sharing the results. Right before he gives the audience a name, a picture of the person in question is shown on screen. Akira only gets a glimpse of him before his attention is drawn elsewhere. Goro abruptly stands up, his face devoid of any emotion as he turns abruptly and walks out of the building, letting the door slam behind him, the bell above it almost mocking. Akira looks around slowly at his remaining two friends, who both seem to be in the same state of shock as himself.

“I...should go find him.” 

Ryuji nods in agreement, “I’ll go with you.”

Ann decides to stay back, if only to look after their stuff while they’re gone. Making them promise to explain once they got back. As he leaves, Akira finds the name running through his head, ‘Masayoshi Shido.’ That is the name of the man now in charge of their country, but why does he feel like he’s heard it before?

==========================================================================================

It doesn't take them too long to find him as he hadn’t left Yongen-Jaya, and the place doesn’t have a lot of places where one can stay hidden for too long. They find Goro in an alley just a few blocks down from Leblanc. The two of them decide that it isn’t worth splitting up so when they find him, they are still together. Akira almost misses the form huddled over itself against the wall, Goro’s fingers are white with tension as they tightly grip his hair, almost enough to pull out it out completely. Akira’s eyes are immediately drawn to the redness of Goro’s knuckles, a thin line of blood runs down each hand. He had obviously been punching the wall, and had stopped just prior to them showing up. 

Akira kneels down in front of him, “Are you okay?”

Goro doesn’t respond, but he does unclench one of his fists, if only to reach out with so he can push Akira away from him. There is almost no strength in it, as if he has given up trying, so Akira easily grabs his hand and holds it tightly in his own.

“Don’t…touch me,” The amount of anger is Goro’s tone would have once been enough to make Akira back away immediately, but now the concern he has for him greatly outweighs the fear he once had about being on this side of his emotions. “Just, leave me alone.” 

Ryuji, taken aback by the situation, says nothing. Though Akira can still sense him standing above them, likely just as concerned about the situation as Akira is. “Can you tell me what’s wrong at least.”

Goro finally finds the strength to push Akira away from him, and this time, he lets it happen, but doesn’t move from his position on the ground. “Why does it fucking matter? None of my problems ever matter to anyone.” 

“Man, who effin’ cares if some randoms don’t give a shit about you?” Akira looks up at Ryuji in shock, almost missing the way Goro peeks out from his arm bundle to glare at him. “The people who do care should be the only ones that matter. And Akira is one of those people.” 

“Exactly.” Akira places his hand on Goro’s arm, “I do care about you.”

Goro stays quiet, but Akira swears he sees him begin to relax, if only a fraction of an amount.

“Yeah dude,” Ryuji continues for him. “And even though I haven’t known you all that long, I kinda feel the same y’know? I bet Ann would agree.”

Akira places a hand back on Goro’s shoulder. He still refuses to look at him, but seems to be much more calm than before. “We’ve all been through something pretty terrible at some point, albeit probably not more than you. We all know what it’s like, at least somewhat. It just means we have to stick together.”

Goro finally lifts his head ever so slightly, taking a few seconds to absorb his words. Akira smile when he slowly nods, silently getting to his feet, “Okay.” 

While it is clear to him that Goro is much less irritable than he had been a few minutes ago, Akira still wants to take things slow. He waits patiently while Goro dusts himself off, trying to make herself presentable again. When he seems pleased enough with the results, he nods to himself. “You ready to go back?” Akira asks.

Hesitantly, he nods. He doesn’t say anything still, but to Akira, it’s enough.

==========================================================================================

Back in the cafe, Goro crosses his arms over the table resting his head on top of them. Akira sits across from him in the booth after letting Ryuji know where the first aid kit is in the bathroom. Ann gives them all concerned looks but decides not to say anything, able to read the atmosphere in the room. Once Ryuji returns with the first aid kit, Akira thanks him and begins silently cleaning Goro’s injured hands; he winces when the alcohol hits his skin but doesn’t complain. The energy in the cafe is tense, like everyone is too scared to say anything. 

Once he finishes, Ann takes that chance to move over from her place beside the wall of the booth. “Are you oka-”

“I’m fine,” Goro’s cold tone causes her to flinch, something he must have noticed, because he sighs. “Sorry.” 

Akira stands up to put the first aid kit away, and by the time he returns, Goro has sat up straight in the booth, his hands in his lap. Ryuji, at least, has enough tact to wait until Akira sits down before he begins to speak, and attempt to break the still tense silence. “I know you probably don’t wanna talk about it, but you should.” 

At first, Akira thinks that Goro will stand up and leave without saying anything, but he doesn’t. Instead he clears his throat, gives the room the fake smile Akira hates and says simply. “This country is fucked.”

Looking to his friends Akira realizes they all have the same thoughts, mostly confusion about what exactly the other is talking about. “What...Do you mean?” Akira is almost afraid to know, but he is also well aware that if he does not say anything then no one else will. 

Goro turns to the television with a frown on his face, as if it’s on and playing the same channel again, “That man, is not a good person.” He turns back to the rest of them and sighs, “Sorry but, is it alright if I speak with Akira alone? I’ll tell the rest of you eventually” Sensing that the other two are about to argue Akira waves a hand at them.

This seems to satisfy them enough to convince them to leave. Ann throws a concerned glance over her shoulder when she opens the door, but still leaves after saying a quiet goodbye. 

Without another word, Goro goes upstairs into the attic, Akira follows behind just fast enough to see him collapse on the sofa. Despite all the anger he had shown earlier, now he just seems tired and a little sad maybe, similar to the way he was months ago when they first met. 

Akira sits on the side of his bed, “So uh, what did you need to talk about?”

Goro doesn’t say anything right away, instead he silently pulls his wallet from the inside of his pocket. He digs through it before taking out a small photograph and Akira can’t help but notice the slight yellowish discolouration on the back side. Goro looks down at it for a few seconds, running his thumb over the front, before seemingly reluctantly handing it to him. 

Immediately, Akira’s attention lands on the woman in the photo. She has long brown hair, the head shot doesn’t give away its length, but it is at least past her shoulder. She looks almost just like...His mother, his brain helpfully tells him. She seems very tired, but overall happy, her smile wide as she wraps an arm around the man beside her. Akira isn’t quite sure why Goro decided to show him this until he takes a good look at the man in the photo. “Oh…” His heart immediately drops into his stomach. “Oh no.” 

“Yeah,” Goro takes the photo back from Akira and stuffs it back into his wallet. “I know.” 

Masayoshi Shido is Goro’s father. Goro’s father is the new Prime Minister of Japan. The same man who contributed to screwing over his friend’s life almost from the very beginning is now in charge of the very country that they live in. He places his face in his hands and asks himself if this is what helplessness much feel like. Even when he was forced to move to Tokyo it didn’t feel quite this bad, the feeling of dread was not the same as this. Speaking of, now that he thinks of it…

“I don’t understand what the world wants from me,” Goro’s trembling voice practically drags Akira out of his thoughts. He immediately gets up, sitting next to him on the couch instead. “Just what am I supposed to do now?”

As much as he wants to help Goro feel a little bit better about the situation, Akira finds that his thoughts come up empty.

_**NOVEMBER** _

Inokashira park in November is unsurprisingly quite cold. It might have something to do with the fact that there are less people, or that the leaves in the trees are slowing beginning to fall in order to make way for winter, but either way, Akira finds himself pulling his jacket closer to his body. He made plans to meet up with Goro here with just the two of them, and while it is mainly because Akira has something to tell him it has simply been awhile since they last saw each other. Ever since they had that serious conversation on election day, they have seemingly gotten much closer. Goro messages him, and the rest of their small group, much more often than he had been before. He’s obviously more willing to be seen with it too, because he actually responds during school days instead of spending several hours completely silent. 

As soon as Akira sees him down the path, he waves to him enthusiastically. Goro rolls his eyes but humours him by waving back, although much more reserved than his counterpart. 

“Hello!” Akira smiles, interrupted by an intense shiver as the wind pick up suddenly. 

Goro looks concerned for a moment, but quickly gains back his usual neutral expression, “Are you sure we shouldn’t move somewhere warmer?”

Akira shakes his head, “Maybe later, this won’t take long.” 

Not one to believe him so easily, Goro gives him a questioning look, “If you say so.” He sighs, pulling his own jacket closer to himself, looking ever so slightly miserable in the current weather. “So what is it that you need to talk to me about?”

“I’ve been thinking,” He says, prompting Goro to turn to him in curiosity. “Mostly about that night, trying to remember anything about it.”

“And did you?”

Akira slowly nods, ever since that day in October, the night of his arrest has been the only thing he could really think about. Something about seeing Shido on TV had made him want to try and remember the details that had been fuzzy to him ever since. “I’m just...worried, about the future.

Goro seems to notice the purposeful chance in subject, but doesn’t mention it. “Yeah, me too.”

Silence stretches between them, the only sound in seemingly the entire park is of the wind rushing through the trees, pulling the leaves off with it. Akira opens his mouth to say something more, but is beaten to it.

“I think I’m going to go to university after all,” He says. “Or at least I’ll try to.”

It takes Akira a few seconds to process what he has just heard, but when he does, he can’t help but let some of his happiness slip into his words, “Really? What changed your mind?”

Goro stares out onto the lake, a fire suddenly ignited in his eyes, and Akira is able to guess his answer even before he speaks. “There are some people I want to prove wrong, myself included.” He turns around, resting his back against the railing, “Perhaps selfishly as well, I want him to know of my existence.”

Akira smiles, bumping their shoulders together, “It’s funny that you mention him.” He says, trying to ignore the way Goro looks at him in confusion. “I couldn’t shake the feeling, that he looked familiar.”

This explanation, however vague, seems to give just enough hints for him to figure out what he means although maybe Akira should give him more credit. “Are you sure?”

“Positive. It was him.” 

Goro inhales sharply beside him in disbelief, “Seems he gets around huh.” 

Akira can’t help but laugh, despite the subject of the conversation, “Seriously.” It had only hit him a few weeks ago, the identity of the man who had gotten him falsely charged; and even though he suspected it, he had still been surprised that it was true after all. It just seemed so strange to him that the person who completely screwed over someone he considers a friend, just happens to be the same person who indirectly caused their meeting in the first place. 

He places an arm over Goro’s shoulder, pleased when he doesn’t flinch or make any move to pull away. He radiates an energy that Akira has never felt from him, one made of warmth despite the chilly weather. 

“Seems like fate doesn’t it?” 

“Perhaps it is Akira, perhaps it is.”


End file.
